Long Way Around
by Sinful2010
Summary: How she ever associated herself with him, I'll never know. But he knew the answers as to why my mother, Sookie Stackhouse was killed 15 years ago. I just had to find a way to tolerate him as he tried to protect me from a fate similar to hers. ERIC/OC
1. Chapter 1

I apologize for the lame summary. I honestly couldn't sum up this story in the length given, so hopefully the story itself will be better than that half-assed attempt!

**CHAPTER ONE**

The butterflies came back

I'd thought I was fine. I boarded the plane in London nearly 12 hours ago. I was fine.

After an incredibly long flight, I arrived at the New Orleans Airport, waited for my luggage and promptly loaded up my awaiting rental car. I was fine.

I was fine until I saw the town limits sign of Bon Temps, Louisiana. Then the realization of what I was doing there hit me like a semi-truck.

I was there, searching for answers. Answers to questions I'd waited far too long to hear.

Bon Temps. A small town in rural Louisiana. Blink. You drive right past it. Many people may wonder what a girl who was raised in an upscale neighbourhood in London, England would be doing in a roughneck town such as this. Well, let's just say I have a family history that is deeply rooted in this place. My mother's entire family was born and raised in Bon Temps. In fact, my uncle still lives there. As far as I knew. He was in fact one of the people I was seeking out. I remember the last time I was there. At my mother's funeral.

I was 10. A young girl who had just lost her mother; sad, frightened and didn't understand why she was gone and why she wouldn't ever be coming back In many ways, I still felt that way because there were still so many unanswered questions surrounding her death. It was the main reason as to why I made that long trek 'across the pond' to the deep south.

I was sweating. I wasn't sure if it was because it was 100 degrees outside with a humidity that I had never experienced in my lifetime, or if it was because I was nervous about being back here. I decided it was a combination of both factors, so I turned up the air conditioning and tried to calm my nerves by blasting my favourite tunes.

Neither worked.

I was finally here. And there was no turning back. The one problem in my plan is that I had NO clue how to get to my Uncle's place. But it was a small town, so it couldn't be too hard to find it? Or at least find someone who knew where it was right?

I approached a turn off that went towards what looked like a restaurant. As I got closer, I read the sign, MERLOTTE'S BAR AND GRILL. I pulled into the parking lot, found a space (which wasn't very hard to find), parked and got out of the car. I walked slowly towards the door, and walked inside. As soon as I stepped inside, it all came rushing back. I'd been here before.

_"Now Mackenzie, you can have anything you want. Okay darlin'?" My uncle said to me after we sat down in the plush red seats of the booths. I remembered he was wearing a black suit, and a black tie. His eyes red from crying, his sandy blonde hair disheveled._

_"A chocolate milkshake?" I said quietly as I fiddled with the hem of my dress. A nervous trait that I kept, even to this day._

_"Can I get a chocolate shake, here?" He called out to the server._

_"Sure" She responded solemnly, giving me a sympathetic glance as she walked away._

_I remembered, even then I hated the sympathetic glances and comments I would get when people found out I lost my mother at such a young age. I didn't want sympathy. I just wanted some resolve._

_She brought the milkshake over and I immediately began to drink from the large glass. "Uncle Jason?"_

_"Yes darlin'?"_

_"Will you come visit after I go back to London?"_

_A few tears fell down his cheek, which he quickly brushed away in an attempt to hide them from me. It didn't work. "Of course."_

_I smiled. The first smile I'd had in days. "Good. I know Mama would like that. I can show you my school. And the park she and Daddy would take me too."_

_He gave me a half smile. "I'd like that."_

_Just as I finished up my milkshake, my father walked in the door. "Mackenzie, darling. Go wait in the car. We have to leave now."_

_"Uncle Jason said he will come visit us in London!"_

_"That's wonderful isn't it?" Daddy said. "Now go wait in the car. I'll be out in a minute. Say goodbye to Uncle Jason."_

_I turned to my uncle, who could no longer hide his tears. "Don't cry Uncle Jason. I'll see you soon okay?" I gave him a huge hug. "I miss Mama too." I grabbed my napkin, and wiped a few of his tears away and crawled out of the booth._

That was the last time I ever saw him.

My father and I went back to London, to try and go on with our lives. Not a very successful feat. Only a year after my mother's death, my father disappeared. Vanished. Like he had never existed. Not knowing whether he was alive or dead, I was placed in the care of my father's aunt Beatrice, a woman I had never met until I was placed in her care. She was a wealthy woman, though I never understood where she got her money from. Family money I suppose. I really knew little of my father's side of the family, despite the fact his entire family was born in England. His own parents had passed away years earlier, much like my mother's had, and she was the only family he had left. She wasn't a particularly warm woman. Aunt Beatrice wasn't cruel, just cold. She'd never married, nor had children of her own and really had no idea how to act around children. What she lacked in warmth, she made up for with the opportunities she provided for me. I was sent to the best boarding schools, had private music tutors and ballet lessons and attended Oxford University. She passed away six months prior to my trip back to Bon Temps. She had left me with a fairly large inheritance and it was then I decided that it was as good a time as any to bite the bullet and go back.

You might be asking why I wasn't placed in the care of my Uncle Jason. A question I really can't answer. I didn't know myself. I remember staying up late many a night as a young girl asking myself that question. Did Uncle Jason not love me? Why wouldn't he want me to come live with him?

"Excuse me. Can I help you?" A thick southern accent snapped me out of my trance.

I looked at the waitress standing in front of me. She was dressed in a white Merlotte's T-Shirt and black pants. She had vibrant red hair, marketed with shades of grey. Her nametag read Arlene in bold, black lettering.

I forced a smile. "Yes. I was just wondering if you knew where I could find Jason Stackhouse."

"Oh my. Such a pretty accent you got there!" She said, her own accent getting thicker in the process. "Uh. Jason usually comes in around dinnertime after work. Might as well just stick around here and wait for him."

"Thanks. I appreciate it."

"No problem." She smiled. "Take a seat anywhere you want."

"Can I get you anything?"

"A glass of red wine?"

"Sure thing."

I took a seat in a far corner booth of the bar. The butterflies in my stomach refused to calm down. The waitress brought me my glass of red wine. I gave her a half smile in appreciation. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." She said, and began to walk away, but stopped herself and turned back around. "You know. You look really familiar.'

"I do?" I took a sip of my wine. The nerves calmed a little.

"Yeah. If I didn't know any better….." Her eyes grew wide. "Oh my god. You're Sookie's daughter."

I nodded solemnly. "Yes."

"I knew it. You are the spittin' image of her."

She was mostly right. I looked almost identical to my mother, except I had inherited my father's dark hair and his tall stature. At 5'11", I was much taller than my mother had been. "So you knew her well then?"

"I did. Very well." She said and took a seat across from me in the booth. "She and I worked here together for many years. She left. I never did." She took my hand and gave it a squeeze. "So what brings you here sugar? Long way from home ain't you?"

I looked down at my glass of wine, and nodded. "I'm just here to try and find out what happened to my mother."

She gave me a sympathetic glance. "Your mama was a strong woman. Never let no one give her any crap. Especially when they found out about her…" She paused.

"Her?"

"You know. Gift."

I nodded. "Ah yes." Her 'gift'.

My mother was telepathic. She could read the mind of just about anyone. Except for a vampire's. Vampires she just couldn't crack.

Shocked aren't you? This isn't just some story about a girl finding herself by searching through her past. It's a helluva lot more interesting than that. Yes. Vampires exist, and (most of them) quite happily live amongst us mortals. Oh, and werewolves exist too.

And shapeshifters.

And just about every other mythical, supernatural creature you can think of.

Except Santa Clause, the tooth fairy, the easter bunny, and unicorns.

"Personally, I think that gift is what…."

"Killed her?" I finished.

"I know that's horrible…."

I took another sip from my wine glass. "Well, I knew it played a part in it in some capacity."

"Hey Arlene! Do you think I could get another beer over here?" A chubby man yelled from across the bar.

"Be there in a minute, Hank!" She screamed back at him. "There's someone else you should talk to. And I'm sure he'd be happy to see you. Give me a minute."

She disappeared into the back, and a few minutes later came back into view with a middle aged man following closely behind her. He was wearing plaid shirt and blue jeans. His hair was slightly disheveled, and grey. He was an attractive older man, his face slightly weathered, unshaven, speckled with salt and pepper whiskers.

"Oh my god." He said as he approached, quickly surpassing Arlene. "It is her. Little Mack."

As soon as he said that I immediately remembered who it was. "Sam?"

He smiled.

I got up from my seat and I gave him a hug. "I can't believe I couldn't remember this was your place."

"Don't beat yourself up about it. You were ten the last time you were here." He said, and released the hug. "Arlene, can you give us a minute?"

Arlene nodded, and walked away towards the bar. I returned to my seat in the booth, and Sam sat across from me.

His warm smile faded. "As good as it is to see you Mackenzie, you shouldn't have come here."

I was confused. "Excuse me?"

"It's not safe here for you."

"What do you mean?"

"Listen. I can't get into it here. It's not the right place." He looked at his watch. "Your Uncle Jason will be here soon. He'll know what to do."

The nerves returned. "What do you mean, 'he'll know what to do'? Tell me what the hell is going on. I didn't fly 12 hours to be pushed out of the way."

Just then, he looked over my shoulder, and immediately got up and made his way towards the entrance. I turned around and saw him talking to a man. The man looked over at me, and there was no mistaking that it was my Uncle Jason. He looked almost exactly the same, just aged. His ice blue eyes met mine and I got up from my seat and walked over to him slowly, not sure of how I would be received considering the reaction I got from Sam.

His eyes welled with tears. "Oh my god."

"Hi Uncle Jason." I said, my own eyes rimmed with tears. I blinked, and a few fell down my cheek.

He wrapped his arms around me for a hug. "You're all grown up."

"I am."

He released the hug and gave my arm a little squeeze. "It's so good to see you. But we have to go."

"What do you mean?"

"I have to get you out of here. We need to get you somewhere safe." He grabbed my arm, and attempted to drag me out the door.

I resisted. "I am not going anywhere unless somebody tells me what the hell is going on."

Uncle Jason looked me square in the eye, his blue eyes were no longer kind. They were serious. "I don't have time to explain now. All will be explained on the way."

"Arlene! Where the fuck is my beer?" The angry man from earlier screamed out again. I saw him pick up his empty beer bottle and hurl it towards the bar.

Everybody prepared to hear the break of the bottle against the wood panel. I looked the bottle. It stopped mid-air, and slowly without the aid of a person, and with a quiet thump, came to its final stop on top of the bar. No glass shattered.

Did I forget to mention I had 'a gift' too? I didn't have the gift of telepathy like my mama did. Instead, I was able to pause and move objects with my mind. Smaller objects were easier to handle, and if I overused my 'abilities', I would get splitting headaches and feel weakened. But bottles being thrown at walls? Easy.

"WITCH!" The angry drunken man proclaimed, but was too scared to approach.

Sam, Arlene, and Uncle Jason looked at me in disbelief as well. "What? You're so surprised? Are you forgetting who my mother was?"

Uncle Jason shook his head in disbelief. "Come on. You're riding with me. You can leave your car here."

I followed him out the door, and climbed into his pick-up truck. He quickly peeled out of the Merlotte's parking lot and onto the main highway stretch.

"Can you at least tell me where we're going?"

"Shreveport."

"And why the hell are we going to Shreveport?"

"Because there is someone there who can keep you safe." He said. "Much safer than I can."

"What do I have to be safe from?" I asked, annoyed by the secrecy the evening's events had taken. Hardly the warm reunion I had anticipated, or hoped for.

"Because of the individuals responsible for your mama's death get word that you are in town." He paused, his eyes never straying from the road. "I fear you may be next."

At that point I was really regretting my decision to come there at all.


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER TWO**

Not a lot was said in the truck as we made the 45 minute trek to Shreveport. At one point Uncle Jason did turn to me and gave my hand a little squeeze.

"I'm sorry for this Mackenzie. This wasn't exactly the happy reunion I had hoped for either. You are the only kin I got left, and I'm sorry I wasn't there for you grown' up."

"What is with all this secrecy, Uncle Jason?" I said, looking over at him, desperate for answers. "Why can't you just tell me what's going on?"

"You'll find out soon Mackenzie. Eric will explain it all when we get to Fangtasia."

"Fangtasia?" The name was almost comical. "What the hell is Fangtasia?"

"A vampire bar."

"Why are you taking me to a vampire bar?"

"It's owned by a friend of your mother's" He said. "He'll know what to do."

We arrived shortly thereafter at Fangtasia. There was a huge line that had already formed outside.

"I don't think we're going to be able to get in." I said, as we made our way towards the entrance.

"We're not waiting." He said, and pushed his way through the crowd, angering mortals and immortals alike. He approached a woman, completely clad in a leather outfit, her blonde hair pulled back tightly in a ponytail. She was clutching a clipboard in her gloved hands, looking down at it intently. "Name?" She said, never looking up from her clipboard.

"Pam. It's me, Jason Stackhouse."

She finally looked up from the clipboard. "Why Jason Stackhouse. Long time, no see. You've aged…." Her tone was dry, dead pan.

"And you haven't. Thanks for pointing out the obvious." He said. "Is Eric inside?"

"Of course."

"I need to talk to him." He said, and began to push his way to the front. She stopped him.

"I can't let you do that." She said. "We are at capacity."

He looked at her square in the eyes, anger evident in them. "Look at that girl over there. She is why I need to talk to him."

Pam finally looked over in my direction, and her normally emotionless face became softened. Her eyes were wide. "Sookie's daughter." She moved her gaze back to Jason. "What is she doing here?"

"Excuse me. I'm perfectly capable of talking for myself." I said, somewhat exasperated. "I am here because I want to find out what happened to my mother."

She nodded. "Very well. Follow me." She handed the clipboard over to a large man who was standing closer to the entrance. "Watch the door." She told him and we walked inside.

The bar was packed. And quite cliche. It was dimly lit, with bright, blood red walls. The stereo was blaring the latest in Norwegian death metal. Humans and vamps were clothed in gothic and fetish wear. Desperate girls tried seek attention from the 'dangerous' male vampires. Frat boys tried to pick up the vampire women. I couldn't help but crack a smile at the ridiculousness of it all.

I noticed a group of people who were crowded around the stage in the corner. The crowd parted some and I saw a girl approaching a man sitting on a chair, that looked much like a throne. The cliche was getting even better. Why the hell we that girl worshipping that guy? Granted, he was attractive. Ridiculously attractive in fact, but I still didn't understand as to why there was a need to worship.

"That's Eric." Pam said into my ear.

I nodded. So that was the guy I would finally get the answers from. It was about time.

"Stay here." Pam said, and left me and Uncle Jason standing in the middle of the packed club.

She walked up onto the stage, and pushed the young girl admiring Eric away. She bent down and whispered something into his ear. His eyebrow raised, his eyes widened. He whispered something back to her and stood up from his seat on the chair. It was then I realized how tall he was. 6'4" at least. He adjusted leather jacket and disappeared from the stage. Pam made her way back over towards us.

"He'd like to see you in his office." She said. "This way."

We started to follow Pam when she turned around and stopped Uncle Jason. "No. Just her."

"What? Is he serious?"

"It's okay Uncle Jason. I'll be fine."

"She'll be fine Jason. Take a seat. Have a beer. It's on the house." Pam said, and began to walk away again. I gave Uncle Jason a half smile and followed her to the back. My butterflies returned, and they were out of control. I felt almost nauseous. I would finally figure out what happened to my mother after all these years, and why my visit to Louisiana wasn't so joyous.

Pam opened the door to Eric's office and stepped aside as I walked in. Eric was sitting at his desk, his leather jacket casually draped on the leather sofa as I walked into the office. He looked up from the paper he was looking at.

"Eric. This is Mackenzie." Pam said.

"Mackenzie." He said simply, his tone casual. "Have a seat." He said, pointing towards the sofa. I moved the leather jacket over and took a seat. "Thank you Pam. You may go."

"But…" She protested.

He looked at her, his expression serious. "No buts. Go. Go see to Jason Stackhouse."

"Very well." She said, rolling her eyes and closed the door behind her as she left.

"Mackenzie." He said again.

"Yes. Mackenzie. That's been established."

He smiled. "You do realize you being here in Louisiana is dangerous, yes?"

"No." I responded. "I didn't realize coming here to find out what happened to my own mother would be such a big deal. I am entitled to those answers don't you think?"

"I suppose."

"So if you would be so kind as to tell me why the hell me being here is so terrible, I would be much obliged." I said, no longer being able to stay content waiting for people to tell me at their own pace. "And then you can get into what happened to my mother, as I understand you know better than anyone what happened."

"I do."

There was a pause.

"Seriously. I am sick of this playing coy game. Just fucking tell me what you have to, and then I can leave."

"Oooh. Feisty." He said, his eyebrows raised, his smug grin returned. "I like it."

I rolled my eyes. Was this guy for real? He had the most ridiculously cocky attitude I had ever experienced in person, though I don't know why I was surprised. He was a vampire. Obviously a very important one. And he was ridiculously attractive. So those three factors obviously played into why he was the way he was.

"Eric. Enough." I said. "Tell me what the fuck happened to my mother."

He nodded. "Very well." He got up from his seat, and began to walk around the desk, and leaned against the desk, his arms folded casually across his chest. "I met your mother through an associate of mine, Bill Compton. Your mother was dating him at the time. Immediately, I was intrigued by her….abilities, and found I could use them to my advantage."

So the assumptions by Arlene, and myself were correct. Her telepathy was what killed her. I wasn't surprised, but it still was a blow. If she hadn't had that 'gift' of reading minds, she would more than likely still be here today.

"She began working for me on various assignments. And soon after your mother began working for me, your father came into the picture. I hired him as my lawyer to draft up documents, and act on my behalf during the day." My father, Daniel Adams, had been a rather successful attorney, and at one point was quite involved with the civil rights movement, trying to get vampires the same legal rights as humans. "Eventually, your parents fell in…'love'."

He said the word love with such disgust. I guess it was true that vampires were incapable of love. Like most men. But I digress.

"When Sookie was pregnant with you, she decided she couldn't continue working for me anymore, as the work we did was rather dangerous." He unfolded his arms, and gripped the edge of the desk. "Of course, I was reluctant. But there was very little I could do to change her mind. They moved to London, and I didn't have any contact for her for years. Until we found ourselves in a bit of a…bind. A deal was made that this particular assignment would absolutely be her last, and she flew back here, for what was supposed to be a short trip. As you know, she never returned."

"What happened to her?"

"It's not important." His blue eyes, wide. Serious.

"Yes. It is Eric."

He ignored my plea and continued. "There is a radical sect of The Fellowship of the Sun church that is actively searching for you. And have been for some time. They were not fans of your mother, or father for being humans who fraternized with the 'enemy'. We made a promise to your mother before she died that we would do whatever we could to protect you. And we've kept to that promise."

"What are you talking about?" As far as I was concerned, after my father left, I was placed in the care of my Aunt Beatrice, no vampires or supes involved.

"Everything you've ever had in your life, we have paid for. Beatrice was somebody we hired to be your caretaker. When she died, the money you inherited, was money that was owed to your mother by the Area 5 council." He said simply. I felt like I'd been punched in the stomach.

"Why do you think you were sent to multiple boarding schools over the years? Every time the Fellowship members were getting close, we would transfer you to another school. We must've had you transferred to 5 or 6 over the years. The year you spent in Germany when you were in University? The church was closer than they ever had been to you."

I couldn't speak. I could barely breathe. My majority of my life had been a lie.

"Luckily, for us now, they think you are in Europe. But it won't be long until word gets around that you are back here. We have some time to figure out a plan as to where to put you next."

"What do you mean where to put me?" I asked, annoyed, finally able to speak. "You aren't going to put me anywhere. I can take care of myself."

"No. You can't."

"Yes. I can Eric. I don't think you understand what I am capable of."

He grinned, that smug grin that he used all too frequently. "Oh really."

"Really." I said simply, and got up from my seat on the sofa. I stared at him, long and hard. I stood with my hands slightly extended at my sides, palms out. I finally closed my eyes, and seconds later heard a loud boom and the sound of glass breaking. I opened my eyes to see Eric on the floor, glass from multiple broken picture frames all around him. I had tossed him around the room. Shortly after doing so though, my knees became weak, my head was spinning.

"Well." He said, as he got up from his place on the floor. "I certainly didn't expect that."

Well, that was one thing he didn't know about me. A plus.

He looked at the mess on the floor. "You're going to clean that up."

The dizziness became worse, and I could no longer support the weight of my own body. I collapsed onto the floor and everything went black.


	3. Chapter 3

This chapter is a little shorter than the others, but it's mostly just a set up for the other things to come. Thanks everyone for your reviews already. And please continue to do so! Enjoy!

**CHAPTER THREE**

That fucker must be ancient.

I came to that realization upon my waking up with what felt like the worst hangover known to man. I had tossed vampires around the room before, that was nothing new. But I have found that the older the vampire is, the more of an effect it has on my body. So Eric…is old.

"Jesus Christ Eric. What did you do to her?" I heard my Uncle Jason yell at him, or he very well could have been talking in a normal voice. My head was pounding and even a whisper would have affected the way I was feeling.

I opened my eyes, which was a mistake. The fluorescent lighting in Eric's office did little to help with my headache. "You must be fucking old." I said weakly.

Eric smiled. "Got a little cocky huh?"

I groaned, and tried to sit up from my position lying on the sofa. Bad idea. My head felt as if it weighed a ton, I could barely move. "What's the plan?" I asked.

"Well, tonight, you can go back to Bon Temps and stay with Jason." Eric said. "But tomorrow you will be coming with me. I have to fly to Seattle tomorrow for a business trip, and there is no way anyone would expect to find you in Seattle."

"I'd rather not go anywhere with you." I said, and managed to finally sit up. I was still dizzy, but it was getting better. "But it doesn't appear as though I ha much of a choice."

"You don't."

"Great." I rolled my eyes, and tried to get up from the sofa, evidently my legs didn't want to co-operate and they gave out from under me. I looked up at Eric, who had a shit eating grin on his face. If I could I'd have tossed him across the room again. Uncle Jason gave me his hand and wrapped it around his shoulder.

"C'mon Mackenzie. Let's get you to bed."

"I will send travel arrangements to you via one of my humans tomorrow morning." Eric said, and walked back around to his desk. "You may go. It's been interesting meeting you this evening,"

"Likewise." I said, and Uncle Jason and I made our way out of the office. I was relieved to finally be out of there. There was something about him I didn't like. He was too confident. Too self involved. Extremely off-putting. How my mother ever worked for him, I didn't think I'd ever understand.

Uncle Jason assisted me out to his truck, and I climbed in. We began our drive, and within minutes I was asleep.

I awoke the next morning, the bright Louisiana sun shining through the window. I didn't remember coming into Uncle Jason's house last night, so he must have carried me in. Bless his heart.

My headache was gone, and I no longer felt dizzy. A few hours of sleep always helped after one of my 'episodes'. I removed the blankets that were on top of me. I needed a shower, and to get out of these clothes. I saw my luggage at the foot of the bed. I guess Uncle Jason had brought my luggage from my rental car. I smiled and walked out of the bedroom. I walked down the narrow hallway and into the living room where Uncle Jason was sitting on the sofa, drinking some coffee, reading a newspaper.

"Morning Uncle Jason."

He looked up from his paper and smiled. "Morning Mackenzie. Did you want some coffee?"

"Yes. Thank you." I said, and took a seat on the rocking chair next to the sofa. I looked around the room. It was very homey, comfortable. One of the walls had a few picture frames with a young girl around 9 or 10 and a boy around 6.

"My kids." He said, as he handed me a cup of coffee. I guess he had noticed me looking around. "Becky and the little guy is Joe. They live in New Orleans with their Mama."

"Were you married?"

He nodded. "Yeah. For about 10 years. We split up when Joe was 3. They are here every other weekend though. They're great kids." He said, smiling, rather proud.

"I'd love to meet them." I said, and brought the mug of coffee to my lips.

"I'd like that." He said, though I think we both were unsure of the possibility of that happening. "One of Eric's minions called with the travel arrangements not too long ago." He grabbed a small piece of paper with some information jotted down on it.

I took the piece of paper from him and set my coffee mug down on the table.

"I'll be driving you to the airport. You'll be meeting Eric there."

"Joy."

"I know he is a little much, Mackenzie. But he can keep you safe." Uncle Jason said, and took a sip from his own mug. "I wish I could take care of you. You're my family after all."

"You have your kids to think about Uncle Jason."

"You'll never know how much I thought of you over the years. How much I wanted to come and see you, to pick up the phone and call you. But if I did, there would be a trail, and it would put you in danger." He shrugged. "I'll never forgive myself for that."

I set the piece of paper down and took his hand in mine and gave it a squeeze. "I'm just glad we were able to see each other now."

He smiled. "Me too."

Before I knew it, I was in Uncle Jason's pick up truck again, headed to the airport. I was not thrilled about the arrangement, but knew it was my only option for the time being. I wish that Eric had arranged a daytime flight through Anubis as opposed to a red eye. If that had been the case, he would have been in carriage in his….coffin, which would have made for a more enjoyable flight for me. Thank God for iPods, as I had no desire to partake in conversation with him at all.

"You be careful now huh?" Uncle Jason said as he helped me with my bag as I boarded the plane. I guess Eric had arranged for a private plane. I wasn't sure whether to be excited, or annoyed. One thing was for sure, he was all about status.

"I will." I said, and grabbed my small carry on bag from him. "I hope we don't go 15 years before seeing each other again."

He smiled. "Me too." He pulled me in for a hug.

"As lovely as this good-bye is, we have a schedule to keep." I heard Eric's voice from behind me. He must have just arrived himself.

I rolled my eyes. "Bye Uncle Jason."

"Bye Mackenzie."

I looked at Eric, and gave him a stare that I'm sure would have frightened most. He merely smiled and chuckled to himself. Annoyed, I walked up the stairs to the plane and stepped inside. This was going to be a long flight.

"Is anyone else going to be flying with us?" I asked, as i took a seat on one of the plush seats.

"No." He said, as he took the seat next to me. The tiny hairs ons my arms raised, and was annoyed he didn't take one of the other 8 seats there were in the jet. I think he knew he was irritating me, and took great joy in doing so.

"Great." I said, and opened up my purse to fish out my ipod. I inserted the earbuds and turned up the volume and closed my eyes as the sounds of Muse filled my ears.


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER FOUR**

After a few hours (and an inability to fall asleep), I decided to break the silence and actually make small talk with Eric. I figured if I was going to be stuck with him for a while, I might as well attempt to be civil.

"So, what business are you tending to in Seattle?" I asked, removing the buds from my ears.

He looked up from the magazine he was reading, and turned to me. "Couldn't keep the silent treatment up any longer?"

"I could go right back to ignoring you if you wish." I stared right back at him. "It really doesn't matter to me."

"A conference for the vampire leaders of North America." He responded. "And as Sheriff of Area 5, I am duty bound to be there."

"Sheriff? Vampires have their own Sheriff's?" I asked, somewhat amused by the term.

"Of course. You think we can trust the humans?" He seemed amused at the very mention of it.

The flight attendant walked up to our seats. "Can I get either of you anything?" She was insanely gorgeous. I could sense Eric was salivating at the very look of her.

"Just a water would be great thanks." I said. She smiled and nodded. "And you Mr. Northman?"

He looked at her, and grinned. "I can think of a few things I'd like."

He couldn't be serious. I just rolled my eyes. I had no idea how I would be able to put up with him.

The flight attendant smiled at him. "That can be arranged." She handed me my water, and I set it down on the table in front of me. I couldn't believe this was happening.

Eric got up from his seat and dropped his magazine on the chair. "I'll be right back." He told me, and adjusted his coat and followed the flight attendant to the other small living area in the back of the plane. I put the earbuds back in my ears and closed my eyes. I needed to fall asleep. I tried. And again failed.

Fifteen minutes after he left, Eric made his triumphant return, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. He confidently strutted to the seat across the aisle from me. He gave me a cocky grin. My stomach turned and I rolled my eyes. Such a pig.

The flight attendant followed closely after, her hair slightly disheveled, a few buttons on her blouse undone, a few evident bite marks on her neck. I don't know why I was surprised. I should have pegged Eric as one of the vamps who refused to drink the blood replacement beverages. This flight attendant certainly went above and beyond the call of duty. Unless it was a service this particular jet company offered. Either way I was completely put off and decided to go back to giving Eric the silent treatment.

I still couldn't understand why my mother would have wanted to be associated with him.

We spent the rest of the flight in silence, as my past attempt failed to show him in any redeeming light. We arrived in Seattle after a long 6 and a half hour flight. It was 2:45 local time. I grabbed my purse and walked towards the exit. I thanked the flight attendant. Eric did the same, with his cocky, sly tone.

_I hate him._

There was a large SUV waiting for us as we got off the plane. I followed Eric to the vehicle, where there was a man waiting for us.

"James. Good to see you." Eric said.

"And you Eric." He said, and moved his gaze to me. "Who is this?"

"The daughter of an old associate of mine. Mackenzie Adams."

"Ahh. Miss Stackhouse's daughter?"

Eric nodded. "Yes. She will be accompanying me to the conference this weekend."

"You are most welcome here Miss Adams. Your mother was a good friend to us."

"Thank you." I said. "James, was it?"

"Yes. James Hunt." He said, and looked back at Eric. "Let's get you back to the hotel."

Luckily it was a short drive to the hotel. I wanted nothing more than to get to the hotel to sleep, and to finally be away from Eric, even if it was only temporary. We arrived at the Carmilla Hotel, which is a chain of luxury hotels that are suited for a vampire's needs. I got out of the vehicle and the cool Seattle breeze was a welcome feeling on my skin, as it was something I was much more used to growing up in London. We walked into the hotel, and the lobby was packed. At a vampire hotel, where most lobbies would be completely empty at this time of night, this was peak check-in time.

"You have already been checked in Eric." James said and handed Eric the keys. "If there is anything you need, just let me know."

"Thank you James." Eric said, and we shuffled our way through the crowd. Eric would be stopped randomly and exchanged pleasantries with various other vampire dignitaries. We finally got onto the elevator and Eric hit the button for the 12th floor. I looked around at the others in the elevator. It seemed that a vampire bringing a human was common place. Each vampire in the elevator had their token human. And I was Eric's.

_Fabulous. _

I exchanged glances with a few of the other humans in the elevator and they would look at Eric and smile in approval, as if to say 'Good job in landing that.' It was almost comical to me. Fangbangers. They were an interesting breed. I was NOT Eric's blood bag. Nor did I ever wish to be. We got to our floor and made our way down the long dark hallway. I was beyond exhausted at that time and wanted nothing more than for Eric to give me my room key so I could go to sleep.

Eric stopped at Room 1289 and began to unlock the door. He stepped inside, and I waited for him to hand me my own key. Finally, I'd be rid of them for the evening.

"Can I get my room key?" I asked.

"This is your room."

_No. Fucking. Way._ "We're sharing a room?"

"Yes. You coming here was notice and the hotel has been booked for months." He said, amused by the annoyed tone in my voice. We really got off in making me miserable. "You do get your own bed though." He looked around the darkened room and flicked on one of the lamps. I stepped inside, and placed my bag on the ground. "Unless you'd like to share." He teased, his left eyebrow raised.

"I'd rather throw myself out a window."

He laughed. "I must go down to the lobby for a while and see to some business."

I was relieved. At least by the time he got back, I would be fast asleep and would have most of tomorrow to myself while he was asleep. "Fine." I walked around the room. The decor was gothic inspired and dark. I liked it. Thankfully, the room was large than an average hotel room, and had two separate bedrooms, with a separate living area. At least I'd have some privacy.

"Pleasant dreams." Eric said as I disappeared in my bedroom.

_Eat shit & die. _

I was out as soon as my head hit the pillow. The bed was seriously the most comfortable thing I've ever slept on. I awoke the next day at almost noon, though you wouldn't know it to look around. All the windows in this hotel have been blacked out to prevent any sunlight from coming in, making it extremely vamp friendly. I really wanted to go out and explore Seattle, and I figured it was as good a time as any while Eric was asleep. I had a quick shower, and got dressed and made my way downstairs.

The lobby was much quieter than it had been at check-in. I only saw a few people in the lounge area, eating lunch, where I figured I'd grab a quick bite myself before I headed off to do my sight seeing. I sat down at an empty table near the back and opened the menu. Nothing overly extravagant, not that I expected it to be considering it was a vampire hotel. All the foods were rich in Vitamin D and iron, which I found amusing. I guess the majority of the humans who did actually eat here were the type who needed to increase their intake of such foods. I ordered a spinach salad and lemon water, and waited for my food to arrive.

"So who are you here with?" A female voice from behind me asked.

I turned around to see a young girl, about 20 or 21. She had long blonde hair that hung loose on her shoulders. Her makeup was thick, dark and she was wearing a pair of black skinny jeans, a red corset top and black studded fuck me heels. Fangbanger. No question. As nobody in their right mind would be wearing that this early in the day.

"Excuse me?"

"Whose human are you?" She asked, and took a seat across the table from me.

"I am nobody's human." I responded, and took a sip of my lemon water. "But if you are asking who I am accompanying, I am here with Eric Northman."

Her eyes went wide, and she smiled. "Wow. Lucky you. I've been trying to get him to notice me for a while now."

I almost choked on the water. "Seriously? Why?"

"Because it's Eric Northman." She said, surprised by my reaction. "He is a legend."

"A title he came up with himself no doubt."

"So you aren't involved with him then?"

I shook my head. "No. As far as I'm concerned he's fair game."

"So is this your first convention?"

I nodded. "Yes. And hopefully my last. And you?"

"Oh. I'm a regular at these things."

I was quickly learning that vampires got more tail than Motley Crue did in the 80's. They had their own groupies, who were far more rabid than I ever would have thought. This young girl was already a seasoned vet at these damn things. I couldn't believe it.

"Oh. How nice." I said, not knowing exactly how to respond.

She grinned. "I'm Jennifer by the way."

"Mackenzie." I said, hoping this girl would leave me alone. I didn't need an Eric admirer at my table, when I was trying to get a break from his real number one fan…himself.

"Nice to meet you." She said, and went to get up. "I'm sure I'll see you around."

My food arrived and I quickly gobbled it down. I wanted to get out of there as soon as I could before any more vampire groupies decided to make conversation with me. When I got outside, it was pouring rain, not that I was really surprised. It was Seattle afterall. I grabbed my compact umbrella from my purse (being from London, I never went anywhere without it), and opened it up and started my little sightseeing adventure.

As the day continued and I found myself at the Seattle Public Market, I had a very eerie feeling that I was being followed. Every few minutes or so, I would look back and see the same man in a black peacoat trailing closely behind. I was getting a little creeped out at the thought of it. Had the Fellowship found me already? How did they find me so quickly? And yes, I could have easily taken that one dude down, but what if there were more? My ability to hurl people distances had a cap off point.

As I continued to weave my way through the crowd of people at the market, clutching a few of the purchases I made, I came to the conclusion that I was most certainly being followed. I ducked into a small, empty, alleyway, and waited for the man to approach. As he turned the corner I hurled him into pile of garbage bags that were lined up against a wall.

"Who the fuck are you? And why are you following me?" I screamed at him.

He looked up at me, covered in old food and garbage. "Eric Northman hired me to watch you."

"Of course he did." I said. "I'm sorry about that. But maybe next time, don't creepily follow along someone. It would be easier just to tell me who you are and then I could tell you to fuck off right away. I don't need to be watched. As you can see I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself."

He picked a piece of old spaghetti out of his hair and tossed it on the ground. "I can see that. But I'm not the only one who has been assigned to watch you. There are others, as Eric said you may pull this trick. They are obviously just a lot more stealth than I."

"It would appear that way." I offered my hand to him and helped him out of the sludge. "Let's get you cleaned up."

I arrived back at the hotel, never having encountered the other people assigned to watch me. Apparently it was Ryan's first case, and hadn't quite figured out the ropes yet. He had told me they were hired just to scope out if there was any other suspicious people around me who may be a threat to my safety. Interesting. I'd gone 25 years without protective duty, and now all of a sudden I needed it?

Unless….

No. That wasn't possible. Had I spent my entire life under the watchful eye of others without even knowing it?

I stormed up to the room, wanting to demand answers from Eric. Again. He would be up by now and he would answer even more questions of mine. Even if I had to suffer the consequences and throw him around the room again.

I unlocked the door to the room and stepped inside, and got the most unwelcome sight of my life.

There, on the sofa, I saw a naked woman, spread eagle, with an extremely naked Eric suckling at her thigh. She was in the throes of ecstasy. I wanted to hurl. Was he REALLY doing this in the living area of the hotel room? He was just begging to be caught. He couldn't have possibly gone into his own bedroom?

I recognized the girl immediately. It was the desperate fangbanger, Jennifer, from lunch earlier in the day.

"Are you fucking kidding me right now?" I screamed.

Eric stopped what he was doing and turned around. The girl rushed to cover herself with a blanket, visibly embarrassed.

He smiled and wiped the blood from his chin. "Mackenzie. I wasn't expecting you to be back for a while." He got up from his place and walked over to me casually, without bothering to cover himself up.

As much as I loathed him, I couldn't help but stare at the perfect body he had. And it was that. Perfect. His chiseled abs. Broad shoulders. Defined biceps. Tight ass. I hated myself for even looking, but seriously, when something that perfect is right there, you have no choice but to do so.

He must have noticed me staring, he continued to walk closer, as he ignored all concept of personal space. He looked down at me, his bright eyes wide, full of lust. "You could join us if you like."

I slapped him across the face and walked away to head to my room. I guess my questions would have to be answered later. I couldn't even look at him.. He was disgusting. He just laughed.

"It was nice to see you again." Jennifer said as I walked by.

Was this girl serious? "Yeah." I said simply and slammed the door behind me.

How was I EVER going to tolerate this guy? He was totally and completely insufferable!


	5. Chapter 5

Thanks everyone for their great comments! They are REALLY appreciated!

And don't worry. Fellowship stuff is coming soon. Just have to lay the foundation before we take that on! :)

**CHAPTER FIVE**

After about an hour of fuming in my room, I decided I needed a drink. One with alcohol. And lots of it. But in order to do so I would have to leave the room, and risk running into Eric suckling on another woman's inner thigh. I cringed, but decided to brave it as the thought of a good cosmopolitan wandered through my mind. A quick change of clothes, some mascara and lipgloss applied, and I was ready to go.

I took a deep breath and walked out of the bedroom expecting to see Eric sitting there. I was relieved to find that he wasn't. He was probably off at some weird seminar for this convention, and for that, I was thankful. I left the room with my purse in tow and made my way to the bar in the hotel. It was fairly busy, but I scouted an empty seat at the bar and quickly bee-lined towards it. I sat down and put my purse on the bar. Within seconds the bartender was in front of me waiting to take my order. He set the Cosmo in front of me and I brought the glass to my lips and took a sip of the delicious cocktail. Just what I needed.

I looked around the room. An assortment of vampires and their humans, making small talk with each other. Jennifer was nowhere to be seen, and I was rather relieved. I'd already seen parts of her I never cared to, and I wouldn't be able to fake small talk with her like I had over lunch. Not after seeing her ovaries. Okay, so I didn't actually see her ovaries as that is completely impossible, but you catch my drift.

As I casually sipped my cocktail, I was interrupted by you guessed it. Eric. Bane of my existence.

"Decided to crawl out of your hole I see." He said, and took the seat next to me, resting his arms on the bar top.

I looked at him. "Don't fuck with me Eric. I'm not in the mood."

"Why do you hate me so much?"

I took another sip of my drink, finishing off the glass. I signalled to the bartender for another one which he promptly brought. "Because you are the most obnoxious creature I have ever had the displeasure of meeting."

"Oh really?" He grinned.

I drank some more. "Yes. Really. How the hell my mother EVER tolerated you I will never know." After a few more giant sips of that drink I was done. Eric Northman was turning me into an alcoholic. But fuck. He was attractive. I drank to cope with my differing feelings on him. I signalled for another drink. I was downing these far too fast.

"I guess you won't." He said simply. "You know you should really lay off the alcohol. It makes the blood taste…sour."

"Well lucky for you then you won't be sampling any." I snapped. "And bartender, can I get a shot of tequila with lemon and salt as well."

The bartender nodded and within moments had another cosmo and the shot of tequila. I looked at Eric as I licked my wrist, staring him straight in the eyes. His eyebrow raised. I took the salt shaker and shook some salt onto my wrist. And licked it again, my eyes still fixed on him. His eyes widened more and his fangs extended. I grinned. The wrist action was really getting to him, and I was amused by it. I took the shot and brought it to my lips and downed it with one quick swig and quickly put the lemon in my mouth and sucked at the tart juices. I removed the lemon from my mouth and put it back on the table.

"Damn. That was good." I said to him.

And I ordered another.

And another.

And another.

Then everything went black.

Remember how I said that flicking Eric across the room gave me a headache that would be the equivalent of a bad hangover? I was pretty on point with that.

I came to on the cool, bathroom floor of my hotel room. It appeared as though I'd spent the evening vomiting in the toilet after my numerous tequila shots.

_Fuck. My. Life. Eric will NEVER let me live this down._

Tequila was a bad idea. A very bad idea.

The room was spinning. My head was pounding. I wanted to throw up again.

And I did. A ridiculous amount.

I curled up in a ball on the floor and silently prayed for relief. It never came. I only felt worse.

I decided a bath would perhaps ease the suffering and I ran the water. I peeled out of my clothes and slowly but surely crawled into the huge bathtub. It was heavenly. The room was still spinning, and my headache was still there, but it helped significantly. I closed my eyes and decided if staying in a hot bath all day was what I needed to not feel like death, I would do it.

"Very nice." Eric's familiar voice enthused.

My eyes opened quickly to see Eric sitting at the edge of the tub, staring at my exposed breasts. I screamed and covered myself with my hands. Bubbles would have been a nice help at this moment. "What the fuck are you doing in here?" I screamed at him.

"I just came in to see if you were alive." He said, grinning "And I see that you are."

"What the hell is wrong with you? Get out of here now." The room began to spin more than before. I suddenly felt sick to my stomach again. Damn him for ruining my only relief. Waves of nausea washed over me.

"Now, now Mackenzie, I was just trying to show that I care."

The bile crept it's way up my throat and I could no longer supress it.

And I vomited. On Eric's leather shoes.

"Eew." He said, never once showing any sort of emotion. "You are going to pay for those."

Tequila. Was a bad idea.

"What time is it?"

"Almost dawn." He said, removing his shoe and tossing it aside. "I am going to go and get some sleep. I suggest you do the same."

"And I will, as soon as you get out of here."

"Fine." He said, getting up from his seat at the tub and he walked towards the door. "Rest well. And when you wake you will go out and buy me new shoes. Size 13. And my feet run a little wide."

He finally left and I sunk into the tub, and completely submerged myself in the water, never wanting to come out. He ruins everything.

At some point I crawled out of the bathtub and wrapped one of the plush hotel bathrobes around me and dragged myself to my bedroom. I didn't have the strength to pull on my pyjamas so I just collapsed onto the bed in my bathrobe and dripping wet hair and fell into a deep slumber. I didn't wake up until mid afternoon. I had a mild headache, but nothing unmanageable. It could have been much worse. At that point I was craving greasy, hangover food and was going to go on search for the room service menu.

I glanced at myself in the mirror and I looked like shit. My hair was a frizzy mess, thanks to the sopping wet hair from last night. I ran a brush through it and tied it back into a ponytail. I got into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and made my way out of the room to find the room service menu. As I entered the living room, I saw Eric sitting in the leather chair by the desk, reading a book. I was surprised to see him as it was still daylight outside.

"Shouldn't you be sleeping?" I asked, somewhat taken aback.

He looked up from his book. "I need very little sleep. And the hotel caters to our needs so all the windows are blacked out to prevent any sunlight from entering."

I nodded. It was then I noticed a huge spread of food on the coffee table in front of the sofa. "You ordered me breakfast?"

"Yes." He said, and set his book down on the desk. "I've noticed over the years you humans really enjoy indulging in greasy foods after a night of binge-drinking. I figured you'd be on a search for some in the morning."

I was surprised. Eric actually did something nice. "Wow. That's really nice of you."

The spread was massive. And there was everything I could have possibly wanted. There was no way I'd ever be able to eat this all. Regardless of how hungry I was. I grabbed one of the gooey cinnamon rolls that were there and sat down on the couch. I took a bite. It was heavenly.

"Don't you ever miss food?" I asked Eric as I took another bite of the cinnamon roll, a small moan escaping my lips.

"No." He said, and got up from his seat and slowly walked over to the couch, and took a seat next to me. "It's been so long since I've eaten actual food."

I set the cinnamon roll down on a plate and licked my fingers. "How old are you anyway?"

"Older than you."

"Cut the shit Eric. Answer ONE of my questions would you?" I poured myself a glass of orange juice from the pitcher on the table and took a huge sip. Fresh squeezed. I was impressed.

"1100."

My eyes widened. I knew he was an old one, but never imagined he was that old. "Oh my god."

He smiled.

"How old were you when you…" I paused.

"Were made vampire?" He finished.

I popped another piece of cinnamon roll in my mouth and nodded, licking the gooey cinnamon from my fingers. So. Good.

"I was 30 human years."

I settled back in my chair, interested in learning more about Eric. Regardless of how much I disliked him on a personal level at that point, I was sure he had some interesting stories. "What happened?"

"You mean, how did I become a vampire?"

I nodded.

"I was wounded in battle." He said, an intensity in his eyes formed. "I was leading my men when we were attacked by a group of enemy warriors, somewhere in Scandinavia, Sweden I believe. I was very close to death. My men were crowded around me telling me stories about how I would be greeted in death by thousands of beautiful women upon my death, and that I shouldn't be afraid."

I listened to the story intently, with deep interest. Eric was a Viking. I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised. He was a tall drink of delicious scandinavian water after all. Yes. I still found him ridiculously attractive even though he made my skin crawl most of the time.

"As I readied myself for my inevitable demise, my men were thrown a great distance, killed instantly. I was quickly approached by someone who appeared to be a young man. I assumed it was 'Death' coming to take me away. But instead he promised me something else. He explained to me that he had been watching me on the battlefield for some time and was amazed by my skills. Instead of offering me the sweet release of death, he offered me immortality. Life."

"What happened to your maker?" I asked, still completely entranced by the story.

His eyes were no longer intense, instead they softened, showing deep emotion. I was shocked. "Godric died, almost 30 years ago."

"How?"

"He met the sun." Eric said, his voice cracking. "He said he couldn't forgive himself for the things he'd done in his lifetime, and that it was time to go. Your mother was there with him when he died."

"She was?"

He nodded. "Yes. Until the end."

Neither of us said much for a while. I just sat there, taking in the information I'd been given. My mother had been there for Eric during a very terrible time in his life, the losing of his maker. One thing was evident, Eric was loyal. Fiercely loyal. And that was something to be respected.

He got up from his seat on the sofa, and began to walk towards the shower. "I am going to have a shower, and get ready for some business I have to tend to."

"Okay." I said, and polished off my glass of orange juice.

"You still owe me shoes." He said, and closed the bathroom door behind him.


	6. Chapter 6

Thanks again for the reviews! Keep them coming! 3

**CHAPTER SIX**

So I did just that. I went and bought the bastard some shoes. I was able to find the exact pair that he had. They cost a pretty penny too? The guy just couldn't be a Converse wearer could he? While I was out I figured I'd do a little shopping of my own, knowing my 'bodyguards' weren't far behind. I no longer cared, and just went about my business, just as I'd been doing my whole life before I knew they existed. Shopping was like a drug to me, I couldn't get enough. So in me being sent out to replace his shoes, I opened Pandora's Box and shopped. Entirely too much.

I bought a few pairs of dark wash skinny jeans, 3 pair of gorgeous shoes and a new dress, even though I didn't really have any place to wear it. But it was THE cutest dress I'd ever seen and I had to have it. It was a vintage inspired dress. Pin-up style. Black, form fitting, with a pleated bodice and cap sleeves. Hugged my curves in all the right places. I was absolutely in love with it.

After some retail therapy I got some coffee and made my way back to the hotel with my numerous bags in tow. A crowd had formed outside the hotel. A rather large crowd. They were all shouting and clutching huge signs that read "God Hates Fangs", "Fang Enablers Rot in Hell", etc. I knew immediately it was a group of Fellowship of the Sun members. Butterflies formed in my stomach. I didn't know if in that group of protestors there was the group who was after me. I hurried my pace, and tried to make my way through the crowd as quickly as possible.

People yelled at me as I approached the entrance to the hotel, saying I needed to find religion and stay away from the satanic forces of the vampires. I was pushed, shoved and ridiculed. If these were the poster children for good Christians, I wanted nothing to do with them. Police officers came up to assist me in the mob, helping me into the hotel. I finally found solace through the black dolls in the lobby, and was immediately assisted by hotel staff, making sure I was okay. I thanked them, and decided to get up to my room as quickly as possible.

I got up to the room and closed the door behind me, resting against it, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Are you okay?" Eric asked.

I nodded. "Yes. Those people are insane!"

"They got here just after you left. I was in a meeting with some of the other Sheriff's and it was interrupted by some rogue members who made their way into the hotel." He said. "They were wielding garlic and holy water." He seemed amused at the thought of it. Evidently the crazies believe that stuff worked in rendering the vampires helpless. Only one thing did. And that was silver.

"Do they really think that shit works? Being confrontational and abrasive never works." I said, setting my bags down next to the sofa. "But I guess you know that."

He laughed, flashing his perfect teeth. "Very funny."

"Here." I said, reaching into one of the bags. I handed him the box containing his shoes.

He took the box from me and opened it. "How did you know I needed shoes?" His tone playful.

I laughed. At least he had a sense of humour.

"Anything else in those bags for me?" He asked, and started to rifle through the bags.

"No. Everything else is mine." I said, and picked the bags up, getting ready to take them to my room. "I have a bit of a shopping problem"

"It would appear that way." His eyes met mine. "The rest of my business has been cancelled for the evening while the 'police' try to break up the mob to prevent anymore mishaps. Would you care to accompany me out this evening?"

"Where to?"

"Just out. We can figure it out as we go along." He said.

The offer sounded better than being cooped up in the hotel all night. And for some reason I found myself warming up to Eric. Ever since the story he told earlier that day. Yes, he was cocky and off-putting at times. But he was certainly intriguing in his own way. "Sure. Why not?"

He nodded. "Good."

"Let me just get ready." I went into the bedroom and set down my bags. I took the new clothes out of the bags and looked at the new dress I had bought. "Definitely wearing this." I said to myself and laid it out on the bed. I walked over to the vanity that was in the bathroom and plugged in my curling iron and curled large sections of my hair and secured a section of hair behind my left ear with a red flower hair pin. I put on a pair of my new black Christian Louboutin shoes and my transformation was complete. I walked out of the room and Eric was waiting outside the door. His blonde hair was slicked back, and he was wearing black dress pants, his new leather shoes (thanks to me!), a black scoop neck t-shirt and his leather jacket. Insanely hot.

He walked closer. His piercing blue eyes looked deep into mine. I felt my heart race. I was confused as to why. Only yesterday I couldn't stand him, and now my heart was racing at the sight of him?

_What the hell is going on?_

"Shall we go?" He asked.

I said nothing. I just nodded. He turned to the side and offered his arm to me. I linked my arm in his and we walked out of the room together.

It was a beautiful night in Seattle. The ocean air was crisp and clean. Wonderful. The crazies outside of the hotel were now gone, and I was relieved.

We said nothing for a while. We just walked, a great distance in fact.

I broke the silence. "Do you ever miss the sun?"

He looked over at me. "Not really. Though, I did used to have the most amazing tan."

I laughed. "I'm sure you did."

He smiled. "See. I'm not so bad am I?"

"Not at all."

We walked some more, and ended up at a restaurant, as he picked up on the fact I was completely starving. The restaurant was dimly lit with candles, and we were seated at a booth in the back.

"What can I get you to drink?" The waiter asked, as we settled into our seats, Eric across from me.

"Can I just get a lemon water?" I said.

Eric grinned. "What? No tequila?"

I looked at him and chuckled. "No tequila. Ever."

"And you sir?" The waiter asked, turning to Eric.

"Can I get a Tru Blood? O Negative."

The waiter nodded, unphased by the request. "Right away sir."

"I didn't think you drank that stuff." I said to him as he walked away.

He leaned back in his seat, casually resting his arm on the top of his seat. "I don't normally. I find it tastes rather metallic. Not my first choice when it comes to satisfying my hunger."

I nodded and flipped through the menu. I decided on mushroom gnocchi that sounded completely delicious. The server brought our drinks and I gave him my order and handed him my menu. I took a sip of my cold water. Just what I needed.

"How long have you known Pam?"

"I turned her in 1905"

"You are her maker?"

He nodded. "She was feisty. Voracious. I was intrigued by her, and figured she would make a good vampire. Much like what Godric did with me."

"Were you ever romantically involved?"

He smiled. "For a brief time, when she was new. Eventually that initial attraction faded. We are much better business partners and friends. We have a mutual respect for each other."

"Is it common for vampires to stay with their makers?"

He took a sip from the bottle of Tru Blood, A look of disgust came to his face. "Not always. You generally stay together for some time, so you can show your 'child' the ropes, and they generally go off and do their own thing. But Pam is fiercely loyal, a quality I find very important."

I wasn't surprised. It was extremely evident he was fiercely loyal himself.

My food arrived and I breathed in the aroma. It was heavenly. The earthy mushrooms, the asiago cheese, the exotic truffle oil. Perfection. I took a bite, and a small moan of pleasure escaped my lips.

"Are you as vocal when having sex as you are when you eat?" He asked, an evil grin on his face.

I smiled back at him. "Wouldn't you like to know?" I popped another mouthful in, and chewed happily.

He leaned forward. "I would in fact."

I almost choked. I took a sip of water to aide in getting the piece of stuck food down my throat. I said nothing, I only blushed. I NEVER blush. "So are you doing this whole watching over me thing because my mother asked you to?" I asked, changing the subject.

"There's more to it than that."

"Oh yeah?"

"Your mother is dead because of me."

My heart sunk. "What do you mean?"

"I had been captured by the same rogue group of vampires that are after you. Pam, and my other subjects in Area 5 sent for your mother to assist in bringing me back. She was hesitant. You were very young and she was worried about her safety. With good reason. But she was confident she would be find as she'd done assignments like this for us in the past." He said. You could see in his eyes he remembered every detail of that night, and was fighting off the emotions. "To make this long story short, your mother and Pam were able to reach me, once I was free the bastards in that church attacked. Your mother was staked alongside some of my other vampire subjects."

Tear built up in my eyes. I was finally hearing the story about what happened to my mother. 15 years after the fact. It was an emotional moment.

"I blamed myself." He said. "She told me to take care of you and ensure you had a good life. I tried to save her by giving her some of my blood, but it was too late. There was nothing I could do."

I wiped a stray tear from my cheek and trieid to compose myself. "Did you love her?"

"No." He said. "I was simply intrigued by her. I had never come across anyone like her in my many years on this earth. Until I met you."

"Do you know what happened to my father?"

He shook his head. "No. I have no knowledge of that at all. The watchers were sent to look after both you and your father. Evidently the watchers for your father failed. All I remember is that I got quick word from your watchers that your father had disappeared and we had to act fast in finding you a secure guardian."

"Why was I never told about this until now?"

"Because your mother wanted you to have as normal a life as possible without getting involved with these politics. And from what I know, your life was as normal as possible, given the circumstances." He said. "I was only ever given second hand information regarding this though. I just saw to it that you were protected. I knew very little of you growing up. Except what was necessary."

I looked down at my laps, and began to fiddle with the hem of my dress. Stupid nervous habit. "I appreciate it."

"What's that? I nice comment coming from you?" He teased.

I reached across the table and tapped his arm lightly with my fist. "Hey now."

He laughed.

We continued our chat as I finished my meal, and he reluctantly polished off his Tru Blood. We left the restaurant and into the cool breeze. It was chilly now and I had forgotten my coat. Eric took note of my shivering and took off his jacket and placed it over my shoulders, leaving him in only a razorback tank.

"Aren't you going to be cold?" I asked.

He looked at me, amused. "I'm already dead. How much colder can I get?"

The moonlight highlighted his pale, broad shoulders. I wrapped my arms around his, and rested my head on his shoulder, and we continued to walk back towards the hotel.

We got back to our room, and I took off his jacket, and handed it back to him. "Thank you."

He took the jacket from me and slung it over his shoulder. "No problem."

We stood there in entry of the hotel room for a while, neither one of us breaking our stare. "Well. Maybe I should go to bed. It's been a big day."

He nodded, still not breaking eye contact. "Yes. I can imagine."

"Thanks for a lovely evening Eric." I said, and moved closer to him and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. I moved back again, his blue eyes staring deeply into mine. He then moved in closer, sliding the back of his cool hand along my bare arms, onto my shoulder, and finally onto my neck, leaving a trail of goosebumps on my skin. I shivered. He moved his head in closer, and placed his lips onto mine, and kissed me passionately, with no restraint. I leaned against the wall, and opened my mouth, allowing his tongue to enter. My knees felt weak. My head was spinning. I'd never been kissed like that before. His lips moved from my mouth, and onto my neck, I leaned back allowing him to taste all of it, as I ran my hands through his hair.

He stopped, and then looked at me, his fangs were now extended. "I should stop." He moved away from me, and I rested my head against the wall.

"You're probably right." I said. "This is a bad idea. I'm going to go to bed."

"Good night Mackenzie." He said.

I disappeared into the bedroom and shut the door behind me, leaning against it as I closed it. I stayed there for a while, taking in what just happened. A few moments passed and I heard a soft tap on the door. I turned around and opened it. Eric burst through the door, taking my face in his hands, and kissed me again, and pushed me towards the bed.


	7. Chapter 7

Thank you all again for the fantastic reviews. A word of warning - this chapter is where it earns its M rating - if you catch my drift. Sorry that it is a little shorter than some of the other installments, but there is some good stuff that is coming up in later chapters. Things are going to get interesting. Make sure to review to let me know what you think!

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

_What am I doing? _

"Should we be doing this?" I asked, breaking away from Eric's kiss.

He smiled, and moved down to my neck again, kissing it softly. "Probably not." He stopped and moved his eyes to mine. "But that makes it more fun." His lips met mine again and I threw all my inhibitions aside and just let it happen. I moved my hands down to his waist and took the bottom of his shirt and began to lift it up. He raised his arms as I lifted the shirt over the top of his head, and it fell to the floor, his eyes never leaving mine.

He moved his hands to my back, and slowly unzipped the back of my dress. The dress fell in a heap to the floor and I stepped out of it, and I kicked it aside. Eric trailed his hands down to my waist and lifted me off the floor. I wrapped my long legs around him and tied my arms around his neck, and allowed him once again to taste the nape of my neck. I closed my eyes and savoured the feeling of his lips on my neck. It had always been my weakness, and Eric knew exactly what he was doing. I suppose over a thousand years of practice aided in his ability.

He continued to walk us closer to the bed. When he finally reached it, he climbed on it, my legs still wrapped around him and he began to lay me down. I unwrapped my legs from him, and he continued to lay between them, his lips still tasting my neck. He stopped and I opened my eyes to see him staring at me, eyes serious, full of lust. I brought my left hand up and brushed a piece of hair away from his face and moved up to kiss him again. His lips tasted so good. Addictive.

Eric moved his right hand from my back to my stomach, and trailed it down under my panties, and inserted two fingers between the folds. His thumb located my clit, and rubbed it slowly. My eyes immediately opened, and my back arched at the sensation. I moaned against his lips, and he grinned evilly as he continued to play down below.

"You're evil." I said, my breathing increased as I began to move my hips against his hand.

"It comes in handy sometimes." He said, and kissed me again. His lips moved down to my neck, and while he engaged in more neck play, he moved his free hand to my back and removed the clasp of my bra. I quickly removed it and he began kissing my breasts and nipples. Sounds of pleasure escaped my lips. The sensations I was feeling were unreal, something I'd never experienced before. I felt myself near climax. Eric must have sensed this, as he quickened his finger play. I moved my hips against his hand more and more until I finally reached a breaking point and I reached orgasm. Waves of extreme pleasure washed over me and I called out in ecstasy. My body completely relaxed, and I struggled to catch my breath.

When I finally opened my eyes, I saw Eric once again staring at me, a confident smirk on his face. "We're not done yet."

He moved down to my stomach, placing a trail of kisses on it as he continued to move down. He slowly began to remove my thong, kissing my legs as he did. He tossed the underwear to the floor and moved his mouth back up to mine, as his hand once again began to slowly rub me down below. The tips of my toes began to tingle. My back arched once again.

"You like that huh?" He whispered, in between kisses.

"Mmmhmm." It was all I could manage to say at that point in time.

He continued to play until I once again reached climax.

At this point, I took control. I wanted him. All of him. I sat up in the bed, and moved my hands to the button of Eric's pants. He grinned in approval. I unzipped them quickly and Eric finished removing them. I sat up completely, resting on my knees. Eric positioned himself the same, and I trailed my hands down his chest, lightly scratching his chiseled abs with my nails until my hand reached his large erection.

"Now whose evil?" He said as I gripped it a little tighter, an evil grin on his face.

I grinned and kissed his neck. I moved my mouth up to his ear. "I want it inside me. Now." I wrapped my legs around his waist once again, looking at him straight in the eyes again. I was done playing around. I needed him right then. He slowly guided his erection into my folds. He was massive and it took some getting used to. Soon enough he was completely inside me, and I began to slowly move my hips in rhythm with his. I couldn't stop staring at him at this point, and he couldn't stop staring at me. His hands gripped at my back tightly, aiding me in my movements. My arms were wrapped around his neck, and my hands played with the back of his hair. His pace quickened, as did mine.

I finally noticed his fangs were once again fully showing, and I knew what he wanted.

"Just do it Eric." I said, as my tongue slowly ran along the end of one of his fangs. "I know you want to."

His blue eyes were fiery. Hungry.

"Just do it." I repeated, my breath becoming heavy as I felt my orgasm build.

He moved his lips to my neck, and kissed it softly. And then, suddenly, without warning I felt his teeth pierce the skin on my neck. It was the most insane sensation I had ever felt. The intensity of it brought me even closer to the edge as I felt him suck the blood from my neck.

"Oh my god." I screamed out, and we both quickened our pace. "I'm almost there."

Eric stopped sucking, and gave my neck a final lick. At that point I could no longer delay. My climax came, hard and fast, as did his. I collapsed against him, resting my head on his shoulder. I was almost completely out of breath at that point. Eric slowly moved me back down to the bed, and rested my head on the pillow.

I closed my eyes, a smile came to my face. "That was incredible." I said between breaths. I opened my eyes again to see Eric laying down text to me, his body turned to mine.

"So you are as vocal about sex and you are with food." He said playfully.

I laughed, and ran my hands through my now mess of hair. "I feel lightheaded. I don't know if its because of the sex. Or the blood donation. But I don't give a fuck either way."

"Wow. Such a potty mouth." Eric said, placing a soft kiss on my neck where he had bitten me. "Is that what 8 years of boarding school gave you?"

"You mean your minions didn't give you updates of my grades in Advanced Cursing?"

"No" He chuckled. "You taste so sweet." He said, his tongue lapping up the extra blood on my neck.

"Now, now Eric." I said, pushing him away from my neck. "A little taste is fine. I don't want to be drained."

He licked his lips and laughed. "I know, I know. I'll be a good boy."

"A good boy? Eric Northman?" I said, and turned towards him, running my hand through his hair. "I don't think that's possible." I kissed him again, tasting the remainder of my own blood on his lips. It definitely didn't taste sweet. It was bitter. But I guess vampires tasted blood much different than us humans. "Now. I'm going to have a bubble bath in that huge tub. And this time. You're invited."

"I like the sound of that." He responded. I slowly got up out of bed. I was amused by the mess of clothes that were in heaps all over the bedroom floor. Sex definitely wasn't an organized activity. I made my way to the bathroom, with Eric following closely behind. I ran the bath, and added some of the bubble bath that the hotel supplied. The citrusy smell of the blood orange bubbles filled the room. Blood oranges. How campy.

After the bathtub had been filled Eric crawled in and settled in, resting his arms to the side of the tub. I crawled in after and sat between his legs, resting by back against his chest. He wrapped his arms around me and hugged me closer to him. I closed my eyes, taking in the sensation of the hot bath and Eric's strong arms around me. I could have stayed in there forever.

"I have a question." I said, breaking the silence.

"Yes?"

"Why do you insist on being so off putting and unpleasant when people meet you?" I asked, half serious, half in jest.

He laughed. "I'm not so bad."

"Not right now." I smiled, and looked up at him. "But I pretty much hated you at first glance."

"You don't get anywhere being a pleasant, happy go lucky vampire." He said. "I mean, some do. But I wanted something more. I had ambition. I wanted power."

"Did you have a family in your human life?" I asked. He didn't respond. "I'm sorry. It's really none of my business..."

"No. It's okay." He said quietly. "Yes. I did. I had a wife. And together we had six children. Only 3 had survived though by the time I was turned."

"Did you ever see them again after you were made vampire?"

He shook his head. "No. Godric forbade me. He said it wasn't good to dwell on the past and that I must look toward my future. And that is what I have done."

"I'm sorry." I said.

"There is nothing to be sorry for. It was over a thousand years ago. I made my peace sometime ago." He said, staring straight across the room. Tears of blood welled up in his eyes.

"I don't think you have." I said. "But there's nothing wrong with that. There's nothing wrong with feeling human Eric. You need to embrace that fact once in a while."

"It's been so long since I've been one though." He said, his tone emotionless. "I don't remember how." A few bloody tears fell from his eyes.

"You do." I said, and brushed the tears away with my thumb.

Neither one of us said anything more. I just closed my eyes and rested against his chest, and he tightened his hold on my, resting his head on mine.

So Eric Northman did have a soul afterall. Who would have guessed?


	8. Chapter 8

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

I woke up the next morning curled up next to Eric. Okay, so it wasn't morning, but rather mid afternoon. The room was pitch dark. I slowly got out of the bed, so I didn't wake Eric, but he didn't stir at all. I guess when you are a vampire and you actually sleep, you really do sleep like the dead. I stumbled around the room and tried to find a robe to pull on. After stubbing my toe a few times, I finally found one of the robes we had tossed to the floor after the bath the night prior.

I quietly closed the door behind me and walked into the living room, and turned on a few lights to actually illuminate the room. I would normally just open a window to get natural light…but being a vampire hotel, it wasn't really an option during daylight hours. I grabbed my laptop that was sitting on the desk and walked over to the sofa with it. I needed to catch up on my emails. I'm sure work was going crazy at this point.

Yes, despite popular opinion, I DO have a job.

I attended Oxford University and obtained a degree from the Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages. Now, what do you do with a degree in languages you ask? Well, some people go on to be interpreters, literary translators or work in communications, instead I fell into the world of fashion. I put that degree to good use, huh? It actually does come in rather handy when working abroad.

I actually have my own line that has launched two collections so far. I've had shows in London, Paris and Milan, and business partner and I are currently readying ourselves to launch the line in the US at New York Fashion week. And my business partner is under the impression I am actually stateside to talk with show producers about the line. Which, is partially the case….

I had originally planned to spend a few weeks in Bon Temps, and then make my way to New York, so I was still on schedule, I just had a minor detour to Seattle on my way to New York is all. After a few days of doing nothing, it was really time to get back into my normal work mode and catch up on my emails, and work on some of my sketches. We will be doing two separate fashion shows, one for the women's line and one for the men's and I needed to finish off my sketches before my meetings in New York. I am the head designer and in charge of the line on a creative level. Ethan, my business partner was in charge of the financials mostly. I had never been good with numbers, but I was largely involved with the business when it came to the promotion of the line. I had a very strong business sense.

The line is very simple, classic but with a bit of an edge. I'd put my blood, sweat and tears into launching and promoting this line and was finally seeing the results in doing so. As I logged onto my email, my suspicions were correct. 68 new emails. Great. Ethan was going to have a shit fit. Granted, he could have just called my cell phone, but Ethan was more of a fan of the email. Luckily the emails were nothing overly important. just a few from my assistant who would be joining me in New York in a few weeks, and from Ethan going over financials. I responded to most of them and left the ones that were less important for later. I grabbed my folder that held all my sketches and laid the sketches out all over the table. I looked over them with a very critical eye, and even though I designed and sketched them myself, I began to jot down notes on what to tweak about the line and what to keep. I was a perfectionist, and any little detail that I wasn't thrilled with, had to be changed.

I got so into my work that I didn't even notice Eric walk into the living room until he walked over to me and started rubbing my shoulders.

"Hey you." He whispered into my ear, and gave my neck a soft peck.

I grinned and looked up at him. "Hey yourself."

"Working hard I see?" He said, his hands still massaging my shoulders, and started to move south. His lips finding my neck again.

"Well, I was trying to…." I said, savouring the feeling of his hands on my skin. "Don't you have anything more productive to do?"

"Productive? Maybe. But more fun? No."

I set my sketches down on the table, and turned around on my knees on the sofa to face Eric. He looked at me with sly eyes. I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him softly on the lips. "Seriously though, nothing more productive to do?"

He grinned. "I do have a meeting soon."

"What do you vampires discuss at these things anyway?"

"Oh, you know. Dark, evil, sinister things. Plots to take over the world."

I laughed and moved the hair out of his eyes. "Haven't you done that already?"

"Not even close."

"Go to your meeting. And then maybe I can get some more work done."

He kissed my neck again. "Are you telling me you didn't have fun last night?" He gave me a quick kiss on the lips. "Because I beg to differ."

"I never said that." I unhooked my arms from his neck and turned around and got up from the sofa. "Go. Be productive. I need to eat, and do some more work."

"Meet me downstairs at the bar for drinks later."

"Drinks for you? Or for me."

An evil grin spread across his face. "Maybe both?"

"We'll see." I laughed. "When do we leave Seattle?"

"Tomorrow night."

"And then where am I being shipped?"

"I haven't decided." He walked around the sofa and walked closer to me, and put his hands on my waist. "Maybe I'll just keep you under lock and key at my house so I can have my way with you any time I please."

"Is that how it works?" I chuckled.

He laughed. "So downstairs. 11:00."

"11:00"

He left the room, and I walked over to the phone to place a room service order, and proceeded to do some more work on my sketches. As I worked, my mind drifted to the night's prior events. Who would have guessed that the dude I loathed beyond belief would have switched my opinion on him in a matter of a day? It was insane. Unexpected. Fucking incredible. In a matter of a day Eric Northman had turned me into a Fangbanger. Hilarious.

The rest of the evening flew by. I finished most of the work I needed to. I put my sketches into the folder and decided to get ready to meet Eric downstairs. I pulled on a long white tank, fitted blazer and faux leather leggings. After applying a bit of makeup and putting my hair into a messy up do I grabbed my purse and made my way down to the bar.

The elevator doors opened and there were two men already inside. Both young and obviously NOT vampires. They seemed nervous and fidgety, for reasons unknown. I gave each of them a half smile and stepped into the elevator, and hit the close door button. Neither of them said a word on the elevator ride. Their nervous energy was palpable, and began to feel nervous myself. There was something definitely off about the two of them, and I couldn't quite figure out why. After what seemed like an excruciatingly long elevator ride, the doors opened to the main floor and I stepped out, wanting to get away from the two of them as quickly as possible.

I walked to the bar, where I saw Eric already sitting at a table. His eyes met mine and I made my way over to the table. I took a seat across from him and set my purse down on the table. As I did, I saw the two men in the elevator in the corner of my eye. Something was definitely off.

"Is everything okay?" Eric asked, obviously picking up on my nervous energy.

"Have you seen those two guys in here before?" I asked him, pointing out the two guys to him.

He casually averted his gaze over to them. "No. Never. Why?"

"There is something off about them. I was in the elevator with them. They are up to something." I said, eyeing the two men as they both made their way towards the main bar. At that point I realized they both had large backpacks strapped to them. I watched as one of them stood up on top of the bar. _What. The. Hell.?_

Their nervous energy had obviously faded away as they both looked confidently amongst the crowd. The man on the bar began to speak.

"Vampires. Fangbangers. And all others in between. In being in this establishment you are sending out a message to the world that it is okay to support the Fang agenda. It is not. And in supporting the Fang agenda, you shall all pay a hefty price. On behalf of The Fellowship of the Sun, I condemn you all to hell…." He said. As you could imagine, in a room full of Vampires they all readied to attack the two men, but they worked quickly as well. They each pulled out a long metal hose with a trigger that had been strapped to their legs. The one on the bar pressed the trigger and a very large flame came from the end and directed it towards the bartender who had so graciously given me the tequila shots the few nights before. He immediately went up into a burst of flames.

Flame. And Vampires. Not a good mix.

Eric jumped up from his seat and took me by the hand and began to pull me up as they continued to burn the vampires at a rather steady pace. I resisted. Instead I looked at them intently. They both continued to work their way around the room, fire jetting out the end of the gun. The one at the bar saw me, and directed his flame to both Eric and I. I saw his finger press the trigger and as the flame approached I closed my eyes and brought my hands up from my sides, palms outward. I opened my eyes as the flame approached and I quickly put my right hand in front of me and it immediately rebounded back at him, blowing him off the bar. He blew back and hit the empty liquor bottles, immediately setting him, and the back wall aflame. He screamed, his skin melting off at an incredible speed. I could have gauged that one a bit better, but I had to act quickly. The other one directed the flame at me as well, and repeated the same action. I again closed my eyes and concentrated on the approaching flame, and just as the flame was about to hit, I moved my hands in front, stopping the fireball in it's tracks and swiftly moved my hand to the right, with the fireball moving in the same direction. The fireplace in the right corner looked like a good place to direct the flame and I pushed my hands forward and the flame ball moved quickly to the fireplace, adding to the already lit fire.

The arsonist still standing looked at me in complete shock and went to shoot again.

"Do you really want to do that?" I asked him, readying myself to again divert the balls of flame being hurled my way.

"Satan!" He screamed and dumped the flame thrower on the floor and attempted to exit the premises. He didn't last long and was quickly attacked by the still standing vampires. My stomach turned. My head felt light.

Even though I'd saved Eric and I from a crispy fried hell, the rest of the room was in disarray. A few vampires hadn't been so lucky, and had turned into sludge, which is what apparently happens to vampires when they are set a flame. Good to know. Vampires and humans scrambled to evacuate the premises as the overhead sprinklers had turned on and were gradually putting out the fire.

Eric grabbed me again by the waist and we made our way quickly outside through the crowd. Fire trucks were already on the scene, moving quickly inside.

"Are you alright?" Eric asked, once we got outside, away from the hysteric crowd.

I was completely drenched and the cool night air did nothing to help my chills. My teeth were chattering. My head was light. I wasn't sure whether it was because of smoke inhalation of the diverting of the fire, either way, I felt like shit. "I..need…a…blanket." I managed to spit out, my entire body shivering.

He ran over to the ambulances (that were there for the humans…NOT the vampires, obviously) and grabbed a huge blanket and draped it around me.

"You…owe….me." I chattered, giving him a half assed smile.

He laughed. "I suppose you did just save my ass."

"Got…that…right…"


	9. Author's Note

Hey all!

Have no fear, I haven't abandoned the story. I have just been INSANELY busy this last month. Weddings (No. Not my own). Various projects due. Just life in general. Thank you all for your great comments on the story and I plan on having an update VERY soon. So please keep posted.

Just for fun, I'm curious to see where you guys think the story should go. I know where it's going, but I'm interested to know in what you all think! I have a ton of stuff coming, that I'm sure you'll enjoy.

Catch you all on the flip side.


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